Just Who Cares Anyway?
by XxX.JokerJunior.XxX
Summary: It ends tonight. No more lies. No more struggling. No more regret. No more fear. No more. Nightwing was alone. He was shunned. No one cared about him. But will the one-eyed mercenary help him? Or will the young hero just sink into darkness with him...


**New story!**

**This was a idea that I've had for a while now... and I REALLY REALLY REALLY like Slade/ Deathstroke!**

**I know this has been done before, but I still don't think there is enough of these types of stories.**

**disclaimer: yeah, I wish...**

**Keep Calm and Read On!**

* * *

It ends tonight.

No more lies. No more struggling. No more regret.

No more fear.

No more.

He was cornered again. He was always cornered. No matter how hard he ran, or how long he hid, the one-eyed mercenary would always corner him. And he couldn't run any more.

Nightwing was alone. He was shunned by the others, blamed for the death of their comrades. But he never wanted anyone to die; he just was in desperate need of a plan. He was outnumbered, outsmarted, and finding out that Kaldur's real father was Black Manta was a miracle. Nightwing's plan was thought of then. When Tula died, the plan was ready to be put into action. The bird knew it was a lot to ask of Kaldur, but they badly needed an advantage in this fight, and grief was something that could be kept till later. So Kaldur was sent undercover, and the team was then led by Nightwing. But all good things can't last forever.

* * *

"Bruce, how could you not tell me?! How could you put her in harms way, and not tell me?!" Robin shouted at Batman on the roof top. Batgirl ran to him and grabbed his hand, trying to calm him down.

"Relax, Dick! Bruce didn't do anything wrong! It was my choice to do this. I volunteered!" the redhead said. Robin turned to look at her and ripped his hand away. He walked to the edge of the roof, looking over the city.

"That's what you think. But I know Bruce. You think you signed up for this; truth is HE signed you up! And I'm sick of it!" the Boy Wonder replied scathingly. Batman sharply turned his head to look at his ward.

"Robin, you know I was respecting her privacy. I was waiting for her to tell you; it wasn't my place."

Robin whipped his head around to glare at the Dark Knight.

"But you still KNEW! You didn't think to try and make her stop this- you let her keep fighting! You directly put her in harms way! That's what I'm sick of. You're not realizing this, Bruce- this isn't about you or Barbara! It's about Batman! You can't just let him decide everything! You need to understand that you can't just let everyone risk their LIVES for Batman! And that's why I'm done. I quit."

The boy ripped off his mask, throwing it down. Batgirl jumped back in surprise. Batman reached out a hand to grab Robin.

"Robin, please think-" he was cut of by the punch in his face.

"No, Bruce. I know what I'm doing. Good-bye."

And with that, the ex-Boy Wonder jumped off the roof top, shot his grappling hook, and swung away.

Alone.

Nightwing was meeting up with Kaldur again. This time, he wasn't alone. When the hero got to the rendezvous warehouse, two other people were with them. A red headed man and a blond woman.

"We're almost there, old friend. Just a little longer. Thank you for holding up this long." Nightwing said to Kaldur. The Atlantean grinned, then grimaced, remembering his mission. The blond woman walked up next to him, grasping his arm. They smiled at each other, as old friends would. Nightwing grinned too. He walked over to the redhead, patting him on the back.

"Thanks again for helping us. We couldn't do it without you, Artemis. And thanks, Wally, for letting her help us in the first place."

The mentioned people smiled a little before returning to their original business. Nightwing walked up to Artemis and placed a black choker necklace with an orange gem around her neck. The company looked at it with great interest, then confusion when nothing happened. Seeing their strange looks, Nightwing explained.

"It's a glamour charm from Zatanna. To the four of us, Artemis is still Artemis. But to everyone else, she is Tigress. Now no one will know who you really are and we can successfully send you into the Light known as the ruthless assassin Tigress, right-hand to Kaldur. You guys remember the plan?"

Kaldur and Artemis nodded. Wally turned to the woman and looked her in the eye before kissing her gently on the lips. Nightwing turned to Kaldur and Artemis and wrapped them both in a bone crushing hug. Kaldur and Artemis, now Tigress, slowly released themselves from the hug, and walked towards the warehouse entrance, glancing back at their friends before leaving.

Wally and Nightwing looked at each other, and followed the first pair, quietly tailing. When they saw Kaldur and Tigress enter the Manta sub, a relieved sigh came from Wally.

"Now we just wait, and hope they don't die, huh?"

"Yeah. Sorry, Wally."

Unfortunately for them, they didn't hope enough.

* * *

They were all dead. Kaldur was dead. Artemis was dead. Wally was dead. Blue Beetle was dead. Impulse was dead. Beast Boy, Miss Martian, Lagoon Boy, WonderGirl.

All dead. All his fault.

He didn't expect Black Manta to find out his son lied. He didn't expect Vandal Savage to kill Kaldur for being a traitor. He didn't expect Ras 'al Ghul to see Artemis's glamour charm necklace during Kaldur's execution and immediately take her out. He didn't expect Blue Beetle to be compromised and sent out to kill the team. He didn't expect Impulse to try and take out the Reach on his own. He didn't expect Beast Boy to be his curious self and follow Bart. He didn't expect Black Beetle to send out Blue to rid the world of the two boys. He didn't expect M'gann to become so depressed after Garfield's death that she would try to avenge him by ambushing Black Beetle-and let Lagoon Boy come too. He didn't expect Green and Blue Beetle to be Black's back-up, ready to kill. He didn't expect WonderGirl to set her own trap for Blue Beetle- and fail. He didn't expect the Reach to try to take Jaime's beetle away from him. He didn't expect both to die. And he certainly didn't expect Wally sacrificing himself to stop the Magnetic Field Disruptors at the North Pole with the Flash.

He didn't expect any of that.

He didn't plan for any of that.

Nightwing had made a big mistake.

He was the cause of all of the death. He was the center. He was the source. He was a monster.

Nightwing knew that in his heart, he could've made do without sending Kaldur and Artemis undercover. He could've kept Impulse and Blue Beetle in the cave instead of sending them to scout for no good reason. He could've watched Beast Boy more closely. He could've been with M'gann and L'gann. He could've talked with Cassie instead of ignoring her, worrying about the mission.

Nightwing knew he was the one to blame. No one tried to hide that fact.

He could see it in their faces; their eyes shot him with the hurt and anger they were all feeling. When he walked through the cave, the whispers that seemed to follow him every. The glares from Flash, Martian Man-Hunter, even Wonder Woman, the lady that was like a second mother to Dick. The avoiding eyes of the other leaguers. They all knew that the fallen heroes had made their choices willingly, and Nightwing was not to blame. But they were hurt and afraid.

Afraid of him. A man they had known since his boyhood. A man who was usually smiling and happy. A man who used to mess with words, prank others when he could, and was always up to something mischievous. A man who had grown into a great hero and leader, proud to be a part of a team.

A man who had sent his best friends and children to their deaths.

A man who had become a monster.

* * *

"Wally's death. Artemis's death. Kaldur, M'gann, Jaime, Bart, Garfield, L'gann, Cassie. All of them dead. All because I didn't think. I didn't plan. Do you get it now? I LET them die ." Nightwing stated coldly, his head down staring at his open hands. Deathstroke just grinned under his mask.

"I do get it, really. I just don't understand why you are so hung up on that. It's pointless."

The ex-Boy Wonder trembled with anger, his hands turning into fists. He lashed out at the mercenary, eskrima stick pressing Deathstroke in the brick wall next to the them. The other eskrima stick was at Deathstroke's throat, a clear warning to stand down.

"No, you don't get it! I'm a horrible person; a killer! I murdered my best friends! Sent innocent kids to their deaths! I'm no good, just a monster." Nightwing hissed at the one-eyed man. The eskrima stick was pressing harder... Until dropping completely. Nightwing backed down, stepping away from the man in front of him. Deathstroke glared with his one good eye, rubbing his neck. " What was that, boy? Still too afraid to take a life? After what you just told me, I had assumed that you were fine with murder."

Nightwing glared right back. "I don't kill."

Deathstroke chuckled. It was a deep, sinister sound. "That's not what you've been saying for the past ten minutes!"

But quickly as it came, the joking manner was over. It was the mercenary's turn to rush at the hero, grasping him by the neck and lifting him high into the air before shoving him into the wall opposite them. Nightwing's eyes closed briefly in pain, the wind knocked out of him. Instinctively, his hands wrapped around Deathstroke's, attempting to remove the large amount of pressure from his windpipe. But the one-eyed mercenary grinned, and pushed harder. Nightwing gasped, clawing at the grip on his neck. The terminator waited until the young hero was nearly blue in the face when he finally let go. The ex-Boy Wonder dropped to the filthy ground, gasping for the tainted oxygen around him. Deathstroke crouched down next to the barely breathing hero and grabbed his hair, forcing his head up.

"Listen and listen closely. You need to understand. There are no clear heroes, or any clear villains. It's all an illusion that everyone else wants you to believe. No one is truly innocent or truly guilty, but we still think they are. There no blacks or whites, no us or them, no good or bad. There are too many gray areas to ignore, so you have to acknowledge them sometime, boy. This war won't ever end if you keep focusing only on what is above or below, not what is in between. What is in the middle can help speed up the war, make the far end come closer. " Deathstroke growled in the younger's ear and letting go of Nightwing's hair to move back and sit on a crate in the alley. "Buck up, soldier. Your friends made their choice. They knew the consequences, and they took their chances. Hell, all of us do that everyday. Me, you, even your precious Batman understands that each day we are playing with fire. That someday we might mess up and get burned. But you are alive, and so is the world because of your decision. Not a mistake-that would be counterproductive. You saved the world and only lost a few people. Kids, yes that's tragic, but that's the price you had to pay. Do you get it now?" The mercenary finished, leaning against the wall behind him. Nightwing finally sat up and narrowed his eyes at the man, but sighed after a couple seconds. Looking down at his hands, he spoke.

"When I was young, my parents were killed in front of me. I lost everything I had in a single second. Batman took me in and gave me a new family, one I thought would never leave. This family of heroes would protect me and understand me, and i would always protect and understand them. But now look us.

When I was young, all I saw was the glory of being a hero. To me, they were invincible, immortal, but I was naive. I saw that Batman trusted me and I was becoming a hero too, until I finally noticed something." Nightwing pulled up his knees and wrapped his arms around them, sounding like a lost child. "It wasn't real. I wasn't a hero; I was a sidekick. On the outside, that was fine but on the inside I knew the truth. Sidekicks are just extras. Understudies to the understudy, the extra only there for the fun of it. Sidekicks were never meant to become heroes. Easily replaced, too. Batman built me up in my mind, but when I got older, learned more and had more experience, I thought he would finally see how good I was doing and actually be proud of me. Was that too much to ask for? One little word of encouragement, one small smile after a good job? Apparently for him, it was. And that crushed me."

The young hero whispered, keeping his eyes down. Deathstroke sighed, and crouch next to the young man. "He was hiding you, ignoring your talent. You were destined for greatness and power, but he kept you from that. He took what you had to offer for granted. That was cruel. I can relate. I understand what you went though when you were a child. The feeling of happiness at your family all around you, but then the terror and pain seeing it ripped away from you. But I know how to make it all better. You need to trust me, Richard. We need to be in this together."

Dick didn't even flinch when the mercenary said his real name. He had suspected that Deathstroke knew all about his other life, his civilian life. After some time Nightwing himself had given away hints to almost everyone on the team and league; forgetting to say Kid Flash instead of Wally, getting too comfortable in Deathstroke's company. Not once did he ever mention Bruce's identity, but Dick knew that Deathstroke would find out some time.

The young hero sighed. He stood, as tall as Deathstroke and turned to him. Looking straight in the eye.

"Ok. I trust you."

Slade Wilson grinned under the mask.

* * *

Bruce was running late. The Joker had escaped, yet again, from Arkham. Batman was up extra late trying to find his secret hideout, but still couldn't find anything. Now he had an extremely important meeting for his company, and for some reason the press just wouldn't leave him alone. Was there some important Wayne Foundation benefit he forgot? Alfred had taken the week off to go visit his niece and nephew in England and Tim was off on another week long mission for the team. He hadn't heard anything from Barbara or Dick, either. But Dick was avoiding him anyways, so he wouldn't say anything. He hadn't heard from Dick in months.

"Mr. Wayne, Mr. Wayne!"

Geez, not another reporter. Instead, his secretary was running towards him, papers in hand.

"Yes, Jillian, what is it?" Bruce snapped, struggle to keep his frustration in check. Jillian had finally reached Bruce and handed him the papers for the meeting.

"Thank you, Jillian, anything else?" Bruce muttered flipping through the documents, not expecting a reply. The secretary looked nervous and started to fiddle with her nails.

"W-Well, Mr. Wayne, actually, there is."

Bruce stopped looking through the papers. There was never anything that he didn't know about beforehand. What could be wrong? Suddenly a voice called him over.

"Mr. Wayne, we're ready to start the meeting if you are..."

Bruce looked at his watch. 11:12! He was 12 minutes late!

"I'm coming, Mr. Johnson." He turned to the secretary who was looking at her feet. "Tell after the meeting, ok? It's only 2 hours. Thanks for the papers, Jillian." With that, he ran into the conference room.

"Finally, now thats over, what did you need to tell me, Jill?" Bruce said cheerily after the meeting. He walked over to his secretary who was sitting at her desk, head bowed.

"What did you need to tell me, Jillian?" He repeated. The lady in front of him looked up, tears streaking down her face, sobs starting to form. Bruce put a hand on her shoulder in comfort. "What is it? What's wrong?"

Suddenly, the door to Bruce's office burst open. Reporters and cameramen streamed in, all intent on getting to Bruce. A red-head walked up to him and, showing her microphone in his face, asked, " Mr. Wayne, how do you feel about your son's murder/suicide?"

Bruce was stunned.

Murder?

Suicide?

He turned back towards Jillian, only to be greeted by the mornings paper. He read the headline slowly out loud.

"Bruce Wayne's oldest son and company heir, Richard Grayson, was found dead in his apartment in Bludhaven today; was it murder? Or possible suicide?"

No.

It couldn't be. Dick wouldn't-couldn't-

Right?

Nothing could've made Dick go that far- but Dick hasn't been talking to him for months...

Was it somehow Bruce's fault?

And while Bruce was dealing with the news, he wasn't the only one... In Central City, Barry Allen, also known as the Flash was also learning that Dick was dead, thinking the same as Bruce. But especially, in the Cave, where the rest of the league and the whole team was gathered to mourn the loss of yet another hero, but the they were all thinking the same thing.

Was it my fault?

Could I had stopped it?

Could I have saved him?

With Nightwings training, it couldn't possibly be murder. No guy could even get close to him without get beat into next week. That only left one option. But why?

Bruce checked out the crime scene. Dick was found in his apartment and was killed by a bullet straight through the heart. No weapon was found, and no murderer was found. The were no broken windows for a sniper to shoot from, and the man in the lobby said that Dick had come home alone, and no one had come to see him.

It doesn't make sense.

Nothing make sense anymore.

Why did they have to let Dick go?

Why did Bruce have to let him go? Abandon him?

Why?

* * *

Slade Wilson watched how Bruce Wayne broke down at the news of his sons death. On the outside he was sad, but the one-eyed man could see on the inside, Bruce was broken. As was the rest of the league. Everyone that had known Richard Grayson was torn over his death. Everyone was broken because of it.

Perfect.

Deathstroke looked over his shoulder to see the supposed dead man in the gym. He was finally accepting the new weapons Deathstroke had given him. Now he just needed to train for them.

Bang!

His aim was perfect.

Bang!

A grin crept over Slade's face as he turned back to the screens. This wasn't just the death of Nightwing; it was the beginning of a new name. It was the beginning of Renegade.

* * *

**Well...ending still sucked.**

**But anyways... REVIEW!**

**Starting now, I am suggesting another story with mine. I just want you guys to know.**

**Story behind the Prompt:**

**I am suggesting this story, A soldiers ****view by Aguna  
**

**PLEASE REVIEW!**

**Peace Out,**

**Joker Junior**


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